Growing Backwards
by StrawHatCaptainLuffy-Sama
Summary: After visiting a weird island full of strange beetles, the crew decides to head to the next island, known as the Chain Island for it's abundance of slaves. They're so focused on staying away from the slave traders' grasp that they don't really pay attention when Luffy says he feels strange. So they shouldn't be surprised when there's a kid instead of Luffy the next day, right?
1. Chapter 1

Luffy laughed casually, as if he hadn't just sent Zoro and Sanji into the water. The sun made the water look orange as it set, making it look as if the men in the water were swimming in orange juice.

"Oops, my bad!" He watched the two men struggle to get back to the Sunny, but then turned away to go find Nami.

"Hey, Nami! Which island is next?" he shouted, kicking a large, eight-foot-long beetle off of the railing.

"Let me check!" Nami called back. Luffy grinned, punching another beetle in the face. But he winced and drew his hand back quickly when the beetle's long, sharp pincers closed over his fist.

"Why you-! I'm gonna kick your ass!" he growled, kicking the beetle into the air. He jumped up and punched it, sending it flying back to it's homeland, the Hard Shell Forest.

"This is the last time you'll ever see the light of day," Sanji hissed, climbing out of the water onto the deck. His clothes dripped, forming puddles on the wood. Zoro followed soon after, looking just as murderous. Luffy laughed at them again.

"I said sorry, didn't I?" he asked, unafraid at the two glaring death at him.

"No," the two men said flatly. Sanji raised a leg, ready to kick a certain someone halfway across the deck. Zoro slightly unsheathed one of his katana, and Luffy's smile faded a little.

"Um, guys...?" He took a step back as they took a step forward, then turned and went into a full-blown, terrified run.

"NAMI! SAVE ME!" he cried, dashing below-deck to hide behind the navigator. Nami barely glanced at him.

"You wanted to know about the next island, right? Well, it's called Chain Island," she read from her navigational book, just as Zoro and Sanji burst through the doors.

"Where is that bastard?" Sanji ground out, looking around the room.

"I'm gonna kill him," Zoro said coldly, glaring at the room with his one eye. Then the two spotted their captain. He was looking over Nami's shoulder, trying to see what she was pointing at.

"THERE YOU ARE!" the men howled, making Luffy jump. He stared at them with a nervous grin.

"Oh, hey guys! Shishishi..." He rubbed his head, knocking his hat down to dangle on his neck.

"What's going on, now?" Nami sighed, noting how the cook and swordsman looked like demons, glaring so harshly at Luffy she was afraid the captain would spontaneously combust.

"That shithead knocked me into the water!" Sanji complained.

"That's no reason to chase him into _my_ room!" Nami suddenly hollered, giving off her own deadly aura. "Get out!"

"Yes, Nami-swan!" Sanji immediately left the room, but Zoro stayed where he was, glaring at Nami and Luffy with his one eye.

"You better be ready the second you step out of this room, _captain_ ," he snarled threateningly, though his voice lacked conviction as he left the room. Luffy sighed in relief, then sat on Nami's bed.

"Thanks, Nami! I owe you one!" He grinned at her. Nami shrugged.

"Just get out," she sighed, "and go away. It's dark out already."

"Shishi, okay!" Luffy obediently left her room, closing the door behind him. Zoro and Sanji were nowhere to be seen, to Luffy's relief. He snuck to the boys' room, then saw that the two were already asleep. Weird, considering that they threatened him less than a minute ago. Zoro's arm dangled over the edge of his hammock, right in Usopp's face. But Usopp was asleep, too, so he didn't notice. Sanji was on his back, one hand on his stomach, the other pillowing his head. Brook was laying like a stick, completely straight and stiff. Franky was draped over the edge of his hammock, his arms mere inches from the floor. Chopper was snugly curled up in his, a blanket bunched around him. Luffy smiled at them all, then climbed up to his hammock, right above Chopper's.

"Sanji and Zoro might kill me tomorrow," he sudenly thought, frowning. "Eh, whatever! I'm too tired to think!" And with that, he flopped onto the pillow, splaying his limbs around him and trying to fall asleep. But a constant nagging in his stomach made it difficult to close his eyes.

xXx

"What's up with you?" Sanji asked, raising a single curly eyebrow. Luffy didn't seem to hear, just kept stabbing the plate of food in front of him with a fork. Sanji sighed, then reached forward and took the fork from Luffy's fingers. Luffy blinked, then looked up.

"Hm?" He put his hand down on the table, right on top of the butter knife next to his plate. He looked down, picked up the knife, and continued stabbing his food.

"What is going on with you? You would usually be done with breakfast by now," Sanji huffed, taking the butter knife as well. Luffy shrugged, then put his head on the table.

"I just feel weird..." he mumbled. The whole crew was finished eating already, and had already left the kitchen long ago. Nobody was there except for Sanji to hear their black hole of a captain say the words "I'm just not hungry." Sanji's cigarette fell to the floor, having fallen out of the owners' now-gaping mouth.

"N-not hungry...?" he muttered. Luffy looked up and saw Sanji's unbelieving stare.

"Yeah, I'm not hungry. You don't need to make a big deal out of it," he suddenly snapped, frowning as he stood up. Sanji watched him leave, completely shocked and confused. Luffy just said he wasn't hungry, then stormed out of the kitchen while there was still food on the table. If that wasn't cause for alarm, then nothing was.

xXx

Luffy wearily sat down in his favorite spot, looking out at the water as if it held the answers of the world. He yawned, stretching his arms above his head, then relaxed against the figurehead. His eyes slowly started drifting closed, but before they could completely close, Usopp started calling him.

"Hey, Luffy! Come look at this!"

Luffy groaned, standing up slowly and hopping back onto the deck. Usopp was swinging around a weird-looking arm thing. It was almost four feet long, with a three-fingered claw at the end. Luffy almost rolled his eyes, but stopped himself and tried to act curious.

"Um, great... What is it?" he asked, a little harsher than he intended. Usopp didn't seem to notice the underlying hint of anger, and instead grinned at the captain.

"It's a weird arm thing!" he said proudly. Luffy stared at it for a second, then shook his head.

"I can see that," he muttered. "I mean, where did you find it?" He stepped forward to look at it more closely. It was fitted around Usopp's thin arm, almost as if it belonged there.

"I found it just floating next to the Sunny! Pretty neat, huh?" The fingers on the arm opened and closed, grabbing at the air. Luffy sighed, then turned back around.

"I guess." He went back over to the figurehead, then climbed back to his special seat. Usopp didn't seem to notice, as he was calling Chopper over to come look. Yawning, Luffy leaned back on the Sunny's nose, looking up at the clouds that drifted lazily over the blue sky. His stomach growled again, but it wasn't because he was hungry. Well, maybe. He winced and put a hand on his stomach.

"What do you want from me?" he groaned. His stomach just rumbled again, making his gut ache even more. Fidgeting uncomfortably, Luffy didn't really notice that he slid a few inches to the left.

"I see an island!" Nami shouted, a hand shielding her eyes. Normally, Luffy would've rocketed over to see, but in this case he just muttered something unintelligible and closed his eyes.

"Really? I want to see!" Chopper cheered, going up the steps to look out at the sea with Nami. "Wow, it's huge!" His large eyes grew larger.

"That's Chain Island," Nami said, leaning on the railing. "You guys better be careful there, that island is full of slave traders."

"Slave traders?!" Chopper squealed fearfully.

"Yeah, you might want to stay close to one of us," Nami suggested.

"Yeah, I probably should," Chopper agreed, hopping off the railing and heading inside. Luffy glanced up at the sound of the door closing, sliding a few more inches to the left. When he saw it wasn't anything important, he closed his eyes again, this time shielding his face with his arm.

"I wonder if Chopper could help..." he thought aloud.

"Nami-sis! There's a Marine ship on our tail!" Franky suddenly called. Nami whipped around, then spotted the said ship a little ways away, slowly but surely gaining on the Sunny.

"Use a Coup de Burst to get us to the next island!" Nami ordered. Franky made an affirmative shout, then ran down.

"Usopp, get the wheel!" Nami shouted. Usopp scrambled to the wheel, keeping it steady. Nami looked around, then looked back to Usopp.

"Where's Luffy?" she asked.

"I don't know! He was here just a second ago!" Usopp yelled back. A cannon shot sounded, dragging the said captain back to awareness from his seat on the lion's head.

"What-"

"Coup de Burst!"  
The ship jerked forward, causing Luffy to fall off of the figurehead. He made an alarmed noise as the Sunny left him behind, and he was falling to the sea faster than he would've liked. He spotted the Marine ship, adding to his panic.

"Wait for me!" he cried, stretching his arm to grab the railing. He almost missed, but at the last moment his fingers snagged onto the rail and he shot over the water, barely avoiding a cannonball to the face.

"I found Luffy!" Usopp called, spotting Luffy trailing behind the Sunny.

"Where is he?" Nami asked.

"He's behind us," Usopp answered, jerking a thumb in Luffy's direction. Nami stumbled over, trying to not be blown away from the force of the Coup de Burst.

"What are you doing out there?" Nami screamed to be heard over the wind. She saw Luffy frown, his mouth moving, but she couldn't hear what he was saying. Gradually, the Sunny slowed down, but it didn't completely stop. Luffy came crashing into Usopp, practically steaming from how angry he looked.

"Why didn't you tell me we were moving?" he shouted at Nami, her being the nearest since Usopp was knocked out.

"We couldn't find you!" Nami hissed back. Luffy blinked, all the anger seemingly draining out within seconds.

"Oh. That makes sense," he said, putting a hand on his head to affirm that he still had his hat. Nami sighed, then glanced at Luffy.

"What's with you, anyways? Yelling at me like that," she huffed. Luffy opened his mouth to answer, but Franky interrupted him.

"Hey! We're landing!" Nami ran off to go do whatever it was a navigator did, leaving Luffy alone on the deck. Except for a still-knocked-out Usopp, who was still wearing the strange arm thing. Luffy growled to himself, then headed to the figurehead to check out the island. Chopper was right, it _was_ huge. Luffy stared at it blankly for a minute more, then yawned and leaned against the Sunny's forehead.

"Why do I feel so weird...?" he muttered to himself. He put a hand on his churning stomach, then listened to the usual sounds of landing. Nami telling everyone what to do, Zoro grumbling under his breath, Sanji scrambling to do the navigator's bidding, Franky laughing while lowering the anchor. Even Brook joined in, dropping the ladder down to land. The crew, including Usopp, who had finally woken up, all climbed down to land. Luffy heard the small thumps as they jumped down to the ground.

"Hey, where's Luffy?" Zoro suddenly asked. "He'd usually be here by now."

"Up here," Luffy called, not even bothering to look down at his crew.

"Why are you up there? We landed," Sanji commented, trying his hardest to act normal. He remembered Luffy that morning, telling him to not make a big deal out of how weird he was acting.

"I know. I just don't really want to explore right now," Luffy answered. He suddenly yawned again, making the crew glance at each other in slight confusion. Luffy was tired? That was a first.

"Well, we'll be checking out the island for the rest of the day. Do you want to come?" Nami asked, somewhat hesitant after Luffy's outburst earlier.

"No," was the flat answer. Luffy closed his eyes, putting his arms behind his head.

"O-kay then..." The crew left, their footsteps soft in the sand. Luffy turned his head slightly to watch them go, his stare unnaturally blank. Once the crew was out of sight, he looked back up at the clouds. A lone seagull flew over head, circling a few times around the Sunny's mast before gliding to the island. Luffy turned his head to stare at the island, examining it with a cold, glazed look.

It was a whole hour before Luffy even moved, slightly shifting a little before slowly standing up. He moved as if the slightest movement caused him pain, and that might've been the case. He climbed over the Sunny's head, landing a little harder than intended on the grassy deck, bending his knees to absorb the shock. He straightened up, looking around as if to make sure nobody was there. He walked over to the boys' dorm, still moving slower than usual. When he got about halfway there, he paused and put a hand on his head, grimacing in pain.

"Now my head, too? What's going on?" he muttered to himself, feeling a painful headache emerging. His abdomen throbbed, trying reminding him that it was still there. He glared down at his stomach.

"Why do you hurt so bad?" he demanded. His stomach merely growled, making him frown even deeper.

"Stupid body," he growled, continuing on his journey to the boys' dorm.

xXx

"Nami-swaan~!" Sanji called dreamily. "Where are you, Nami-swan~?"

"Over here, Sanji-kun!" Nami shouted back. Sanji immediately was by her side. "What is it?"  
"The shitty marimo is gone," Sanji suddenly hissed, eyes turning dark. He pulled his cigarette out of his mouth to blow out a puff of smoke.

"Did you go look for him?" Nami asked, turning back to her clothes shopping.

"Not really," Sanji admitted.

"Then go look for him!"

"Yes, Nami-swan!"

"I'll help, Sanji-bro!"

"Fine! Just don't get in my way!"

"Right!"

xXx

"Stupid walls, always moving in front of me," Zoro growled, running into his fifth dead end. "I ought to just destroy them all. It would be easier to find my way back."

"Is that Roronoa Zoro?" he heard someone mutter behind him. He looked over his shoulder to see a middle-aged man, holding up a newspaper, staring at him. Another man next to him leaned over to look at the paper, then glance at Zoro.

"Yeah, I think it is," he said back, looking at the paper again.

"Did I hear the name Zoro?"  
"Zoro is here?"  
"Then is Straw Hat Luffy here, too?"  
"What about Black Leg Sanji?"

Zoro could feel a lot of people staring, so he quickened his pace.

"Damn love cook, leaving me behind. Now what am I going to do?" He ignored the fact that now people were hastily stepping out of his way, giving him a clear view of the street. He spotted Chopper's bright blue hat, and started to head that way instead.

"Clear the way!" Zoro looked back, again, to see a giant, flabby face raised a foot above the rest of the people. He wore a sickening smile, and the whole street cleared out. Except for Zoro, who stopped where he was and glared at the man.

"Hey, it's Zoro!" came Chopper's child-like voice, but Zoro didn't turn. He was focusing on the man that was obviously a Celestial Dragon, obvious from the fact that he was riding on another man's back.

"You, out of the way!" the fat Celestial Dragon snarled to Zoro. "Or I'll have you executed!" In a flash of steel, Zoro was suddenly standing beside the Dragon, his sword pressed against the spot in between his fat stomach and his flabby face. Because, really, there wasn't a neck that he could see.

"You're an eyesore," he growled lowly. "Get lost." The fat man's eyes bulged, and he fell backwards from his seat on the other man's back. Zoro lowered his sword, watching the Dragon hastily scramble backwards. The people stared in horror, but Zoro didn't seem to care. The slave, as Zoro figured he was, struggled to his feet. Zoro saw the chains on his wrists, ankles, and neck, and snorted in disgust. With a single swing of his sword, the chains were cut into pieces.

"Get out of here," he ordered the slave, giving a harsh glare. The man took a few steps back, his eyes shining in gratitude, before turning and sprinting away.

"Zoro! Zoooroooo!" Zoro finally looked over at Usopp and Chopper, watching them hurry through the barren streets, Usopp waving his arms like a moron.

"D-did that long nose say Zoro?" the Dragon gasped. Zoro shot a murderous stare at him.

"Who else?" he hissed. The fat Dragon's eyes widened, then he suddenly smirked and slowly got to his feet.

"Guards! I want this man as my slave!" he barked. A couple dozen men that Zoro hadn't noticed before surged forward, and Chopper squealed.

"We're going to be captured!" Usopp grabbed his horns, ungraciously dragging the reindeer behing him as he ran.

"To the Sunny!" he called, leaving Zoro behind in his wake. Zoro sighed, then loped after the sniper, the Dragon's guards all falling, one by one, behind him.

xXx

"Heey! Shitty swordsman!" Sanji called dully, for what seemed like the hundredth time. When there was no answer, he decided to take drastic measures. He cupped his hands to his mouth, spotting Franky giving him a curious stare.

"RORONOA WILL NEVER BECOME THE WORLD'S GREATEST SWORDSMAN!" he hollered, and Franky's face dawned with understanding. There were a few curious glances, but Sanji ignored them.

"THE FUCK DID YOU JUST SAY?!"

"Found him," Sanji sighed, putting his cigarette back in his mouth.

"That was a super idea, Sanji-bro!" Franky complimented, doing his weird pose. Sanji grunted, then started to where he heard the shout originate from.

"Zoro, calm down! You won't be able to find that one person in this entire crowd!" came Chopper's voice. Sanji started walking quicker, getting a glimpse of Chopper's blue hat.

"Oh, I will! I know exactly who said that!" Zoro raged, pulling free of Chopper and Usopp's restraining hands. "Get over here, dartbrow!"  
"What did you just call me, moss head?"  
"You heard me, love cook!"  
"I didn't quite catch it, grass brain!"

"Sanji-kun! Did you find him?" Nami suddenly called, running up to the group.

"Yes, Nami-swan~!"

"Good, because we need to get back. It's getting dark. Where's Robin?" Nami looked around, as if the archaeologist would be standing right there.

"Right here."  
Well, actually, she was standing right there.

"Good. Brook?"  
"Here! Yohohohoho~!"

Okay, we're all here! Let's get back to the Sunny."

xXx

Usopp noisily crashed aboard the deck, Chopper right on his tail.

"Luffy! We're back!" they called cheerfully. There wasn't an answer, and they looked at each other in worry.

"Where's Luffy?" was the first question out of Sanji's mouth. Robin climbed aboard, then crossed her arms like she did when she used her Fleur Fleur Fruit powers.

"Luffy-san is asleep," she informed. They all relaxed, and the rest of the crew climbed aboard.

"How long until the log pose is set? This island gives me the creeps..." Usopp shivered, as if to clarify his statement.

"It takes two weeks," Nami said grimly. The crew gained tense looks, each remembering the reason this island was called the Chain Island.

"Let's go to bed," Nami said suddenly, already heading to the girls' dorm.

"Good-night, Nami-swan~! Robin-chwan~!" Sanji cooed, smiling stupidly until the girls disappeared through the door. Then his face turned serious, and he turned and headed for his own hammock.

"What, no unnecessary comments?" Zoro said, leaning against the mast and watching the cook go with his piercing eye. Sanji paused long enough to glare at the swordsman.

"Shut up," he hissed, almost slamming the door closed. The others followed close behind him, leaving Zoro on watch. Again.

xXx

As the guys stepped through the door, they immediately headed to their hammocks. Chopper climbed into the one under Luffy, Usopp under him. The arm that was found earlier was tucked under Usopp's bunk, carefully wrapped in some kind of cloth. Brook took the other top bunk, Sanji below him. Franky jumped into his own modified hammock, the other ones not large enough to carry his bulky frame. As everyone fell asleep, Brook stayed awake, listening to all their breaths slowly evening into slow, deep snores. He looked over at Luffy's bunk, seeing the blankets all bunched up around the captain's thin frame. He chuckled a little, spotting a single arm dangling over the edge.

 _I wonder what made Sanji-san so tense today_ , he thought, thinking of how Sanji seemed more on-edge and not as flirty with the ladies as usual. He glanced below him, seeing Sanji's eyes open. Brook realized Sanji's stare wasn't the blank stare of someone in thought, which made him curious. He followed Sanji's slightly tense gaze, surprised to find the cook staring at Luffy.

"What makes you stare at Luffy-san like that, Sanji-san?" Brook asked softly, surprising himself with his own voice. Sanji didn't flinch, used to Brook's sudden night questions.

"He was acting strange today, don't you think?" Sanji whispered, watching Luffy fidget in his sleep.

"Yohohoho... Yes, I think so, as well. Ah! But I have no brain to think with!" Sanji chuckled a little, then turned on his side, his back to the other bunks.

"Well, it doesn't really matter. He'll be back to normal by tomorrow," he guessed, closing his eyes.

"Maybe, Sanji-san. Maybe."

xXx

The crew groaned awake, drawn to awareness by the smell of breakfast.

"Nami-swan! Robin-chwan! Breakfast is ready!" came Sanji's predictable call. "Hey, shitheads! Come get your food!" Within minutes, the crew was seated at the table, steaming plates of some kind of breakfast in front of them. Everyone except their captain, that is.

"Hey, where's the shitty captain?" Sanji grunted, watching everyone inhaling their food. Usopp swallowed, then looked at Sanji.

"He's probably still asleep," he suggested, picking up another forkful of a kind of eggs. Sanji nodded, then headed for the boys' dorm.

"Hey, shithead! Breakfast!" he shouted, banging on the door. He heard some excited noises, but there wasn't anyone charging out to eat everything before everyone else did. Curious, Sanji opened the door. There was a moving lump on Luffy's hammock, but it was just drawing the blankets tighter around them. Sanji sighed, then went over and gripped the edge of the hammock.

"I said breakfast!" he shouted, tipping the hammock over. The unsuspecting shape was thrown to the floor with a small yelp. Sanji frowned. That didn't sound like Luffy. If he didn't know any better, he was almost sure he heard a kid...

He suddenly reached down, snatching the blanket away from the boy. There was another child-like noise, and Sanji's cigarette fell, just like it had the day before.

There, giving him a strange look, was a small kid, wearing Luffy's special straw hat. And he looked exactly like the captain, only younger.

"What the hell?!"


	2. Chapter 2

_**Here's the chapter you all have been so desperately waiting for...**_

* * *

The small kid stood up, head tilted to the side with a puzzled expression.

"Sanji? Why are you so tall?" he asked, pulling up the sleeves of his shirt.

"I'm not tall. You're short," Sanji said bluntly. Luffy frowned.

"Am not! I just... used Gear Third or something!" he said indignantly. Sanji shook his head mournfully.

"Why does my captain have to be such an idiot?" he groaned. "You were turned into a kid, moron." Luffy puffed out his cheeks.

"Did not!" He aimed a kick at Sanji's leg, but the shirt he was wearing tangled around his legs and tripped him. Landing on his face, Luffy raised his arms in a gesture of surrender. "Okay! Maybe I was!"

"Get up." Sanji yanked Luffy to his feet, paused, then just picked the miniaturized captain up.

"What the hell?" Luffy struggled against Sanji's hold, scratching with tiny fingers at the cook's hands.

"You won't be able to walk in that," Sanji scoffed, gesturing to the shirt that was much too big for the kid. Luffy pursed his lips, but stopped wiggling. But he didn't stop complaining.

"Why did this happen to me? Now I'm so weak! I can't even walk!" He continued whining as Sanji headed to the kitchen, Luffy under his arm.

"WELL FINAL...ly?" Usopp gazed at the tiny child under Sanji's arm. "A kid?" At his question, everyone turned to stare at Sanji.

"It's Luffy," Sanji explained flatly.

"Oooohhh..." Everyone turned away, uninterested.

"AT LEAST CARE A LITTLE BIT!" Luffy screeched, squirming out of Sanji's grip. He stalked to the table, sitting down with a huff. Then he realized he couldn't quite reach the top of the table. He peeked over the edge of the table, and watched his friends eat. He finally stood up on his seat, then sat on the table and snatched the closest plate. It happened to be Franky's plate.

"Hey!" Franky protested as Luffy scarfed down the plate. He reached to take it back, but suddenly, his eyes met Luffy's. His eyes were wide, pleading, and he looked just like a tiny kicked puppy. Franky hesitated for just a second, then pulled his hand back with a frustrated sigh. Luffy wasted no time in shoveling the rest of the scraps down his throat.

* * *

After breakfast, the crew put away the plates and such and placed Luffy in the middle of the table. The mini captain glanced around him apprehensively.

"What?" he asked slowly.

"Just trying to figure out how you became so tiny," Nami answered.

"Do you feel any pain? Aches, stings, itching..." Chopper poked Luffy's back with a sharp hoof.

"Oh, yeah." Luffy held out his hand, the one that had been bitten by the beetle back at Hard Shell Forest. "Right here." Chopper grimaced at the sight. The scratch was long, extending from wrist to knuckles, and it was deep. It had stopped bleeding, but there were tiny black lines seeping from the wound.

"That doesn't look good," Usopp muttered. Chopper nodded.

"Come with me. We have to fix that before it gets even more infected." He didn't give Luffy time to reply as he grabbed the kid, who was the exact same height as him, and dragged him to the infirmary, protesting the whole way.

"...Well, that was certainly weird," Usopp said bluntly.

"You think?" Zoro put his hands behind his head and leaned against the wall. "It's not every day our captain turns into a little kid." There was silence for a few seconds.

"Well... I guess we should figure out a way to help him," Nami sighed. "Robin, we'll need your library."

"Of course."

* * *

Chopper methodically rubbed the wound with an antiseptic-covered cloth. Luffy flinched at the sting, but then got used to it and relaxed as Chopper tossed the cloth aside and grabbed a roll of bandages.

"You know, I don't like beetles anymore," Luffy announced as Chopper tied off the bandage and released the child from the infirmary.

"Since when did you even _like_ beetles?" Chopper sighed to himself.

"Never!" Luffy grinned, his sharp ears catching the small mutter, then bounced away.

* * *

"Roooobiiiiiin!" Luccy called loudly, cupping his hands to his face. A Robin copy appeared from the wall, smiling slightly.

"Yes, Luffy-san?"

"Nothing. I was just wondering where you were," Luffy said innocently. Robin chuckled, then gestured to the library.

"I'm in the library, if you'd like to join me," she offered. Luffy stood for a second, pondering her offer, then grinned broadly.

"Sure!" He skipped to the library, shoving open the door with so much force it banged against the wall. Robin watched him enter with amusement.

"This is a library. You need to be quiet," she admonished gently. Luffy's big eyes widened even further, and he clapped his hands to his mouth.

"Oops!" he whispered. "Sorry!"

"It's alright. Now, what do you want to read?" Robin gestured to the seat next to her. Luffy slowly and quietly walked over with exaggerated care, then climbed onto the chair and shrugged.

"I don't know," he whispered. "I've never really read anything before."

"Well, now's a good time to change that, isn't it?"

* * *

 _ **Because of a request, I decided to make Robin act as Luffy's mother until this whole mess is solved. And, because someone asked, I'll make Zoro act like a dad. The rest will be like either older siblings or aunts and uncles. Your choice.**_

 _ **And the chapters will be about this long from now on. Forgive me! *Bows***_

 _ ***Suddenly imagines a manly Zoro holding a cute chibi Luffy***_

 ** _*Spits out syrup, eyes wide*  
_**

 ** _Killer mental image right there!_**

 ** _Anyways, I was surprised by how well this was recieved! Thank you for all who reviewed! Until next time, everyone!_**


	3. Chapter 3

_***Drags my finger in the dirt***_

 _ **Was the last chapter that bad? I got twelve reviews on chaper one, but only two reviews on the second? Was it too short? Please tell me why you didn't like it as much as the first chapter! I want to fix it so I can satisfy my readers as much as possible!**_

* * *

Luffy slowly kicked his little feet, reading a book called _Rain of the Forgotten_. Robin had no idea what drew him to read that book, consdering all the adult-rated gore that was in the book, but once he had opened it to the first page, he hadn't put it down. Every once in a while, Robin would peek and see what page he was on, and was surprised when he read almost as fast as her.

"What made you choose that book?" Robin asked out of the blue. Luffy glanced up and shrugged.

"It just felt right," he answered childishly. Robin blinked, then chuckled and continued reading her own book. One called _Tale of the Snowy Sea_. After a while of comfortable silence, Usopp suddenly felt the need to explode into the library like a stick of dynamite.

"LUFFY! CHOPPER NEEDS TO CHECK YOUR BANDAGES!" he announced loudly. A hand suddenly sprouted from his shoulder and slapped over his mouth, effectively silencing him.

"This is a library. It's meant to be quiet," Robin warned, while Luffy folded the corner of the page, closed the book, and hopped onto the floor.

"I'll be right there!" he said cheerfully, smiling. Usopp waited until Luffy had left, before turning and staring at the book Luffy had left on the table.

"Was Luffy just...?" he imitated flipping pages. Robin smiled and looked down at her book.

"Yes he was, Usopp-san."

* * *

"How much loooongeeer?" Luffy whined, sticking his tongue out slightly between his lips.

"I'm about done," Chopper patiently replied, wrapping the bandages tightly around Luffy's hand. "Wounds this deep and long need to have their bandages changed often. Come back right when you wake up tomorrow," he ordered, tying off the end of the bandage. Luffy flexed his hand, pleased that it only slightly ached when he stretched the torn skin.

"Thanks, doctor!" he squeaked, jumping off the bed and running away happily. Chopper blushed and waved him away.

"Like I'd be happy you called me doctor! Brat!"

* * *

Luffy eventually found his way up onto the grassy deck, where Zoro was relaxing against the railing and snoring. Luffy took a seat on the mast's bench, just watching Zoro sleep like a creepy stalker. He considered waking Zoro up, but didn't want to have to face an angry, cranky, sleepy Zoro if he was woken from his nap. Instead, he watched Zoro until the swordsman shifted uncomfortably in his sleep. Something just wasn't right for him. He felt like someone was standing right next to him, staring at him.

Finally cracking open an eye, Zoro stretched his arms above his head. He still felt like he was being watched, so he looked around until he saw the tiny, almost ghost-like figure of Luffy sitting at the mast, his shirt adding to the creepy effect. He smiled widely when Zoro stood, then got up and bounced over to him.

"Zoro! You're awake-" the captain started to exclaim, but the ship suddenly lurched in an unforeseen wave, and the small five-year-old was tossed to the side, careening over the railing. His mouth was open in a soundless scream, his eyes wide with horror, completely unprepared to hit the frigid waters. But out of nowhere, an arm suddenly appeared over the edge of the ship, latching onto his shirt. Once they had a grip, another arm came and wrapped around his stomach, pulling him back onto the deck.

Still in shock, the miniaturized captain didn't notice that Zoro was standing awkwardly, holding the child at arm's length while frowning. He didn't know the first thing about how to treat an eighteen-year-old in a kid's body, and something told him he wasn't supposed to treat him like a kidor an adult.

"T-thank you," Luffy finally said, blinking. Zoro put the boy on his feet, then started to walk away, until something wrapped around his leg and made him stop. Annoyed, he looked down to pry whatever it was off of his leg, but was surprised to see none other than Luffy clinging to his leg.

"Uh..."

"I almost died!" Luffy suddenly said, looking up, eyes wide with wonder. "But I didn't! Because Zoro came to save me!" Zoro, slightly embarrassed, kicked his leg, unsuccessfully trying to get the rubber boy off.

"It wasn't that great," he muttered, turing a little pink. But Luffy was true to his name; he clung to Zoro like a monkey, climbing up his leg until he was perched on the swordsman's shoulder.

"Thanks, Zoro!" The child gave a face-splitting grin, something so _Luffy-like_ that Zoro had to look away to hide his smile.

"Anything for the baby captain," he muttered, walking away with Luffy chattering away on his shoulder like a parrot.

* * *

 _ **Here's number three. I realized that I hadn't updated Growing Backwards for a month after I first published it... So take this little family moment as an apology! If there's any omakes or anything you'd like me to do, then tell me! I need to make these chapters longer, anyways!**_


	4. APOLOGY AND ANNOUNCEMENT

_**Hello all. I know it's been a while, huh? Before you rage at me, throw things, or plot my ultimately painful demise, let me explain.**_

 _ **I've had cancer for a while now, and my family's tight on money. So we had to sell my computer to try and get my cancer treated. I haven't had a chance to touch an electronic device (minus painful medical equipment) in months, let alone been able to log into Fanfiction and type for my stories.**_

 _ **Ultimately? Treatment worked. I'm now scot-free, with just a few scars and no hair. I've been thinking about working on these stories again, but I'm not too sure about that. My writing has definitely improved after all these months of inactivity, so if anybody wants me to restart my stories, drop a review and tell me. Maybe one day I'll suddenly get the inspiration to continue writing these awful things, maybe even go back and fix them up a bit.**_

 _ **All of these were started on the whim of a stupid, oblivious fourteen-year-old girl that wrote thinking she was better than everyone else in the world. Now, I know better. I'm not the best, and I'm not the worst, but I can sure as Hell try.**_

 _ **I hope that all of you will forgive me for my extended absence. I know there was no warning and I just dropped off of the face of the earth, but for what it's worth, I'm sorry. I'll try to be as active on here as before, but I can't make any promises. Especially now that I'm not so sure if I'm in the One Piece fandom as deeply as I was before.**_

 _ **Farewell for now, and I hope that I will see all of you again someday.**_


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